Telegraph-key



(No Model.)

.P. B. DELANY.

Telegraph Key.

No. 232,007. 7 Patented Sept. 7,1880.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

PATRICK B. DELANY, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

TELEGRAPH-KEY.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 232,007, dated September 7, 1880.

Application filed June 18, 1880.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that LPATRICK B. DELANY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Philadelphia, in the county of Philadelphia and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Telegraph- Keys; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the .tme,retere1':ce being had to the accompanyin g drawings, and to letters or figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to that class of telegraphic instruments known as keys, which are Worked by hand for transmitting messages by the Morse system of tclegraphy.

Its object is to provideakey with a contactanvil and contact hammer or point, either of which is capable of adjustmentto present fresh contact-surfaces of the anvil to the said contact hammer or point, as required to enable the adjustment of the position and range of movement of the key-lever to suit the convenience of different operators and to obviate the direct pounding and jarring sensation which constitutes a well-known objection of operators to keys of this class as hitherto constructed.

The peculiarities of construction and arrangement which form the essential features of my invention will be hereinafter particularly described with reference to the accompanying drawings, and definitely pointed out in the appended claims.

1n the drawings, Figure l is a side elevation of my improved key. Fig. 2 is a top view of the same. Fig. 3 is a bottom view of the key-base, showing connections. Fig. 4 is a vertical section on line :10 00 of Figs. 1. and 2. Fig. 5 is a vertical sect-ion through the diameter of the adjustable contact-anvil and its supporting-standard. Fig. 6 is a view of the anvil detached. Fig. 7 is a detail sectional View, illustrating the arrangement of the leverspring. Fig. 8 illustrates a modification of the invent-ion.

The letter A designates the kevlcver, from opposite sides of which project the pivots B, having conical points centered in bearingscrews a, mounted in studs 0, projecting from (No model.)

a base, D, of non'conducting material, preferably hard rubber. Through the rear end of the lever A passes an adjustable back stop screw, E, the top of which strikes upon metal plate f, fiXed upon the base. From the upper side of the keylever A, at a point on the line of the pivots, projects an arm, G, through the upper porlion of which is fitted an adjustable contact -screw, H, provided with a platinum tip, h, arranged to strike the margin of a platinum-faced disk, I, resting upon a seat formed for it at the top of an arched standard, K. rising from the base Din front-of thepivotal line of the lever A.

A screw, 71, projects from the back of the disk I through a hole in the standard, and is provided with a thumb-nut, i, by means of which thedisk may be firmly held to its seat, and on loosening which the said disk may be turned about its center to presenta fresh portion of its margin to receive the blows of the contactscrew H. The disk I thus constitutes an adjustable anvil which may be quickly and easily turned to insure clean and bright contacts, and to prevent the common fault of sticking.

Under the key-lever A, in front of the standard which supports the adjustable anvil, is arranged aspiral spring, L, the upper end, l. of which is straightened and sets in a socket formed in the end of an adjusting'screw, M, passing through the lever, while the lowerend ot'said springrestsin a metalliccnp, N, set into the base I), and having a central stud, a, projecting through the same, and serving, in connection with a nut, 0, as one of the points of attachment of the wires used to complete the circuitthrough the key.

P P are binding-posts arranged upon the top of the base for the purpose of adapting the key for immediate use without the necessity of locating it upon a specially- 'nepared table, required for ordinary keys. These bindingposts are secured to the base by screws 1) 11, passing from the under side of the base in a well-known manner, as shown in Fig. 3.

From the screw 2), which is tapped into binding-post P, a wire, 8, leads to the screw (1, which connects with the stud (J, and from this screw q a wire, 9, leads to a screw, 1", which passes through the baseD and secures the circuit-closing lever B thereto, said lever being arranged to swing upon a foot-piece, k, of the standard K to close. circuit and to swing back against a stud, s, to open it. From the screw r a wire, 10, leads to the stud a, projectingfrom the metallic cup N, which forms a seat for the spring L. From the screwp, which is tapped into the binding-postal a wire, 11, leads to the screw it, which connects with the standard K and foot-piece k, as shown in Fig. 4.

From the description of the conductors the circuit will be obvious.

It is an advantage peculiar to my improved key that the key-lever may be adjusted to stand at various angles to the base to suit the convenience of different operators, and it may at the same time be adjusted to have any desired range of movement. For instance, in Fig. 1. the lever A is shown as standing at angle inclining upward toward its front end. Now, to give it a position parallel with the base, as shown in dotted lines, it is only necessary to screw downward the back stop screw E, and screw rearward the contact-screw H until the position of the lever and its range of movement are found by trial to be as de sired. The screw M may then be adjusted to give the desired tension to the spring L.

It will be observed that by arranging the contact-screw, which strikes the anvil, in an arm projecting at an angle from the keylever, and placing the anvil in proper position to receive its stroke, I obviate that direct pounding which becomes so irksome to operators when the anvil is placed under the key-leverin front of the pivotline. This pounding, as it is called, is commonly supposed to produce paralysis,anda key arranged to avoid it has been deemed a desideratum in the art of telegraph y.

Ido not confine myself to the precise arrangement of the parts as shown in the drawings, as the same may be variously modified without departing from the principle of my invention; as, for instance, the arm projecting from the key-lever and carrying the contact' screw might be arranged to project from the under side of the lever, the anvil being placed in a proper corresponding position; or theadjustable anvil might be arranged to receive the stroke of a contact-screw arranged through the end of the lever opposite the handle or knob.

It is obvious, also, that my adjustable anvil may be used with the ordinary old-fashioned key.

In the modification shown in Fig. 8 the contact point or hammer is made adjustable in a circle and the anvil is fixed. The screw H in this modification passes through a plain hole in the supporting-arm, and is provided on each side of said arm with stop-nuts It h,

by means of which it may be fixed at anypoint of adjustment, either axial or circumferential. The screw H is bent in the form of a crank, the part h, representing the handle, being the hammer or contact -point which strikes the anvil I. By turning the screw H this hammer or point may, as is clear, be adjusted in a circle, and thus brought opposite different points of the margin of the anvil.

It is obvious that the localities of the hammer and anvil are interchangeable.

What I claim isl. Atelegraph transmitting-key having one of its electrical contactsurfaces (either hammer or anvil) adj nstable laterally, and its anvil provided with an extended face, whereby fresh portions of the face of the anvil may be presented to the hammer, essentially as and for the purpose set forth.

2. The combination, with a telegraph-key lever and its circuit-closing contact-point, of 80 a contact-anvil capable of adjustment laterally to present fresh surfaces to said contact without varying the distance between the point and anvil, substantially as described.

3. The combination, with a telegraph-key lever and its contact-screw, of a metal disk, 1, arranged to rotate with its marginin the path of the tip of said screw, and electrically connected with suitable line-attaching devices, and the screw-thread spindle 2 fitting loosely in an aperture in the standard, and the jamnut i, substantially as described.

4. A telegraphkey lever having an arm projecting at an angle therefrom and carrying a contact point, screw, or stud, in combination with a contact-ai'lvil arranged to receive the stroke of said point, screw, or stud, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

5. In a telegraph-key, the keydever A, having the adjustable back stop screw E and arm G, carrying the adjustable contact-screw H, of the anvil I, arranged in the path of said contact-screw, and suitable electrical connections and a circuit-closing lever, substantially as described.

6. The combination, with the base D, keylever A, anvil, and connections, substantially as described, of the spring L, the screw M, passing through the lever and connected with said spring, and the metallic cup N, forming aseat for said spring and provided with stud n, essentially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

PATRICK B. DELANY.

Witnesses:

H. J oos'r, JNo. S. DEVLIN. 

